Supreme Court Ruling Could Force Major Changes in Second-Injury Fund

Like lawmakers in many states facing mounting deficits in their second-injury funds, the Missouri legislature has taken a number of steps through the years to reduce liabilities and avoid higher assessment fees on premiums. The latest attempt, passed in 2013, may have gone further than lawmakers intended and could mean the fund will no longer cover injuries sustained by most workers who had pre-existing conditions when they were hired, attorneys told the Missouri Supreme Court last week. If the court sides with the Second Injury Fund's interpretation of the law, “liability will shi...